[NAGDU] Loose Dogs

[Julie J.]

I think you did fine.  Sometimes stuff happens and you just have to roll 
with it the best that you can.

I've had dogs follow me before.  If my dog is reasonably well behaved, then 
I keep going and don't worry about the other dog.  If the dog is really 
close and wanting to visit, I might let the dogs greet briefly, then pat the 
other dog and tell him, okay and go home.  I also move myself between the 
two dogs and turn my shoulders slightly away from the other dog and toward 
my own.  And don't turn your face toward the other dog, making eye contact 
will encourage interaction.  If I need to, I'll give the other dog a nudge 
toward leaving.  Usually by this time either the other dog has gotten the 
hint and moved along or someone has come to collect him.  Either way is fine 
with me and I don't worry about it.  I kind of enjoy meeting friendly dogs 
when I'm out.

It depends on your dog's personality though.  All of my dogs have been very 
different.  Belle was skittish around other dogs when they got really close. 
She didn't want to meet and greet.  Monty was super excited to meet new dogs 
when he was younger.  Now he's pretty indifferent.  He doesn't react much at 
all, except for maybe a glance in their direction.  Jetta is dog distracted 
and does love to meet new dogs, but I think other dogs find her intimidating 
because I never get random dogs coming up to her.

Don't be so hard on yourself.  I think you handled it fine. Also I think 
Demi was about as good as she could have been in the circumstance.

Julie
Courage to Dare: A Blind Woman's Quest to Train her Own Guide Dog is now 
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-----Original Message----- 
From: Rachel Grider via NAGDU
Sent: Tuesday, August 30, 2016 5:05 PM
To: nagdu at nfbnet.org
Cc: Rachel Grider
Subject: [NAGDU] Loose Dogs

Hello, NAGDU Friends:

Twice this month, Demi and I have encountered dogs that were running loose 
with no leash or owner.

The first time, these two very small dogs just started following us. I don't 
know if they had collars, but there was no one else around. They were not 
aggressive or anything; they were just flirting with Demi. At first, Demi 
was interested, but I gave her a verbal correction, and she showed no more 
interest. The dogs followed us for several blocks, and they seemed to find 
it fun to run circles around us which caused Demi to slow down to avoid 
them. I planned to call animal services, but after a few blocks, they ran 
into the open door of an office building, so I decided to let someone else 
figure it out. No harm was really done, and I thought that Demi behaved 
fairly well under the circumstances.

What happened today was a different story, and I know I didn't handle it 
very well. Demi and I were walking down a very busy street, and there was no 
one else on the sidewalk. I heard a soft pattering sound coming from the 
street, and I didn't realize what it was until the two dogs which were both 
about Demi's size ambushed her. They weren't trying to hurt her, but they 
were trying very hard to engage with her--and Demi, who is normally very 
good about not engaging with anyone but me, dog or otherwise, while she is 
in harness, was sniffing and licking right back. I tried everything to get 
her to move, but everytime she would try to take a step forward, the dogs 
would either step in front of her or draw her attention again in some other 
way. I probably should have given her a high-collar correction, but it 
literally didn't even cross my mind at the time because I never have to go 
that far with her--but even if I had done that, it wouldn't have gotten rid 
of those dogs...Anyway, after about a minute of trying to get Demi to focus 
and shew the dogs away, these two ladies came and pulled the dogs away from 
us by their collars. They were really nice and said that they had me having 
trouble with them and that they would call animal services to try and find 
their owners. I thanked them, but I felt really stupid that I couldn't 
handle my own dog well in this situation.

What have you all done in similar situations? If this happens again, I want 
to be able to handle it without help...

Thank you,

Rachel
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